There is a great variety of honey varieties in Russia! Golden-transparent linden, dark, like amber, buckwheat, fragrant herb. Did you know that there is such an elite beekeeping product as white honey? And this is not an artificial substrate, but an entirely natural product, no less useful than other honey varieties! Let’s talk about its types, advantages, useful properties now.
What is white honey
The answer is simple, like everything ingenious: this is a pollen-based treat, like all other varieties. The original whitish shade is due to the monofloral nature of the collection – in other words, the source of nectar is any one type of flowering shrub or grass. Honey plants tested by beekeepers, the nectar of which is converted into white honey:
- cypress (Ivan tea),
- linden, raspberry inflorescences,
- flowers of white acacia varieties,
- cotton color,
- white clover honey plant, and others.
Immediately after collection, the product has a characteristic transparent golden color. But after crystallization (sugaring), the nectar collected from these plants turns white. True, other shades are still present and depend on the source of pollen: greenish, pink, baked milk … In a word, for every preference, color and aroma.
How to get a creamy consistency and a white tint
Indeed, white honey looks out of the box, which raises doubts – why did the sweetness acquire such an uncharacteristic shade and texture? Experienced beekeepers know three ways to create white honey.
- Natural – when natural sweetness ripens from the nectar of honey plants, and, after crystallization, the same milky-white hue is created.
- The bees are artificially fed with a sugar solution. As a result of such a trick, the nectar, which “make” hardworking bees, acquires an increased percentage of sweetness, quickly becomes sugar-coated, acquiring a pronounced light color.
- Mixer application. Another beekeeping trick. After beating, classic amber honey changes its structure, and due to the ingress of oxygen bubbles into the product, it brightens and becomes an exotic white hue. After beating, a characteristic white bloom appears on the surface of the honey – oxygen bubbles tend upward, which creates a feeling of a light shade.
True white honey is obtained only by collecting nectar from certain types of plants. The other two methods are aimed, rather, at increasing the profits of not too conscientious beekeepers who want to bail out more money for an exotic product.
Important!
The product obtained as a result of artificial feeding exceeds all conceivable indicators of sugar content, thereby posing a danger to the health of diabetics and people with increased body weight.
Useful Properties
It is not for nothing that beekeepers indulge in tricks to give the usual beekeeping product an appetizing creamy color.
Attention!
Those who regularly drink tea with small portions of real white honey on a regular basis will have a comprehensive health effect.
White varieties are distinguished by special medicinal qualities:
- Strengthening the vitality of the body. Resistance to seasonal viruses and colds, and other ailments will increase against the background of an organism weakened during the winter.
- The cough will pass, regardless of the nature of the occurrence.
- The condition of the ears, throat and nose will improve.
- The nervous system will be strengthened, the mood will become more positive and calm.
- The condition of the gastric mucosa will improve, such troubles as ulcers, gastritis, colitis will cease to cause inconvenience. Fireweed honey is very good for this purpose, the composition of which is rich in tannins.
- The decay products will be removed from the body.
- The severity of spasms in women during “these” days will decrease, and young men will be pleased with the increase in “masculine strength.”
- The general tone of the body will become significantly higher, vigor, vitality will appear, and mood will improve.
Sorts
On meadows, mountain slopes, in the steppes of our country, you can find a variety of melliferous plants. Therefore, there are quite a few varieties of honey of white shades, and each of them has a peculiar taste and aroma inherent only to this type.
Crimson
After collecting the nectar is golden and pleasant. Having been candied, it transforms into a thick white, viscous, with a characteristic floral aroma. Taste sensations are very pleasant, there is no bitterness, but there is no excess cloying too. It is especially good with tea for colds and SARS, to strengthen the nervous system.
White lime
After pumping out of the honeycomb, it is a transparent golden composition, sometimes with a tint of greenery. It quickly becomes sugar-coated, while acquiring a whitish tint and an uneven structure with grains. It features an incomparable aroma of linden flowers, a tart, but extremely pleasant taste. It is especially useful for colds, infections, and other diseases of the ENT system.
White sweet clover honey
Transparent golden with a slight shade of green when fresh, whitish creamy – after sugaring. The taste is delicate, sweet, with a hint of vanilla, without pronounced bitterness. Contains an amazing amount of minerals and trace elements, it is useful for various types of diseases.
Rapeseed
Fresh honey is golden, amber, transparent. The aroma is quite pronounced, pleasant, plant-floral. Crystallizing, it acquires a bitterness. The structure of candied rapeseed nectar is heterogeneous, characterized by large yellowish or grayish crystals. Bitter rapeseed honey is useful for heart problems, body intoxication.
From alfalfa
The alfalfa shrub is quite unpretentious, therefore it grows almost everywhere in the country. Fresh honey has a bright floral aroma and a unique, but very pleasant taste. Once sugared, it takes on a creamy texture and a tinge of heavy cream. An excellent remedy for gastrointestinal disorders and low immunity.
White cotton
In a candied state, it has a homogeneous creamy structure, a delicate creamy sweetish taste, slightly tart. The scent of fresh flowers, the main note is rose. Crystallizes quickly, in about 30-40 days due to the high percentage of poly- and monosaccharides. Useful for reduced immunity, therapy of superficial skin lesions. Has pronounced antiseptic properties.
From flowers of white acacia
Such honey is obtained from the pollen of white acacia flowers. Immediately after pumping, it is transparent, light, pleasantly golden. After crystallization, it becomes sugary, with grains, whitish creamy color. A special feature is considered late sugaring – due to the small amount of sugars. It is used in the treatment of the liver, gastrointestinal tract, hypertension and even diabetes mellitus.
Esparcet
The melliferous plant can be found in Asian, Bashkir, and Ukrainian areas. Differs in an extremely pleasant soft aftertaste and light aroma of wild flowers. It crystallizes for a long time, but at the end of this process it becomes like a sweet creamy cream. It has a vivid bactericidal effect, it is used for weakened immunity and seasonal respiratory infections.
Cypress
Immediately after pumping out of the honeycomb – fragrant, transparent texture, sometimes with a green tint – white fireweed honey contains a large amount of pollen. It is obtained from the flowers of the Ivan-tea plant (narrow-leaved fireweed). Due to the large amount of mono- and polysaccharides, it crystallizes surprisingly quickly, acquiring a creamy texture, an opaque white color, and a greenish tint. Tastes moderately sweet, with a pleasant bitterness. Good for gastrointestinal disorders, colds, genitourinary diseases.
Taiga white
It is obtained from the nectar of flowers of plants and shrubs growing on the mineral taiga soil: angelica, rapeseed, meadowsweet, raspberry, sweet clover, sage, forest geranium, etc. In most cases, it is a monofloral (multicolor) white honey with a rich, beneficial composition. Accordingly, the beneficial qualities may differ based on the source of the collection of nectar. Eat and use for medicinal purposes crystallized.
White Bashkir
A treasure trove of health benefits! Honey from Bashkiria is obtained from the nectar of plants from the republic’s generous forests. Such a product is quite dense and viscous, sweet, white and yellow. The composition is characterized by a low moisture content and a large amount of pollen. Thanks to its medicinal properties, it is appreciated all over the world. Allergy sufferers are advised to use with caution – because of the larger amount of pollen.
There is such a variety of Bashkir white honey as neat honey. The texture resembles thick sour cream or aromatic ice cream. Great for disorders of the nervous system, a decline in immunity, a tendency to rapid fatigue. Has a pronounced antimicrobial effect.
There are several other varieties of white nectar:
- Amaranth – viscous and thick, with a pleasant sweetish taste without cloying, used for heart disease.
- From clover – honey plant. Differs in a slightly astringent taste, has antibacterial, hemostatic, soothing properties. It is used for recovery after surgery, with nervous shocks, for the normalization of the gastrointestinal tract.
- White honey from a camel thorn. Collected in Central Asia, Kazakhstan, the Caucasus. It has a low moisture content. To achieve a white color, this variety is artificially whipped. But even in this form, the healing qualities are not lost, which allows the product to be used for a variety of diseases. Camel thorn honey is useful for metabolic disorders, obesity, immune ailments, liver and kidney diseases.
Whipped
Whipped or creamy honey is created artificially by whipping a regular honey. At the same time, the appearance of large candied crystals is achieved. Artificially whipped white honey has a homogeneous pasty consistency. The peculiarity of cream honey: when whipping, sugar crystals are crushed, which avoids pronounced sugaring of the product.
We make white honey at home using a special technology
We have already mentioned how white honey is made just above. This is a natural process – honey harvesting occurs from the flowers of certain plants, feeding the bees with syrup or whipping.
To obtain honey from plants that produce white honey, bee hives can be installed in the places where they grow. Check in advance if there are buckwheat and other plants near the field, from which varieties of a dark shade are obtained. Only selective collection from flowers and shrubs, the nectar of which creates white varieties of honey, will allow you to get the desired product.
As for whipped honey, there is a whole technology for its preparation, patented by E.J.Dice. The process of obtaining cream honey is as follows:
- Divide the sweetness into 2 parts: 10% and 90%.
- 90% pasteurized – this way yeast bacteria are destroyed.
- Whisk 10% well until it is as foamy as possible.
- Mix both parts of the sweet substance.
- Put it in a moderate cold – 14 C Celsius.
- Beat well again – in order to crush the sugar crystals.
Pay attention!
It should be remembered that such a product is only a promotional version of real white honey, it is made for a gastronomic purpose and does not always have its inherent healing qualities. But nevertheless, due to the pleasant taste and interesting consistency, the demand for a white whipped product remains high.
How to recognize a fake
It is obvious that honey of white varieties not only has an interesting look and texture, but also has amazing medicinal properties. And how varied and pleasant are the tastes of white honey varieties! All these qualities make not too conscientious beekeepers and just sellers want instant profit. As a result, counterfeit white honey goes on sale, which at best does not have special healing qualities, and at worst carries a visible threat to health.
For example, as we said earlier, if there is an artificial impurity of sugar in honey, the consumption of sweets by a diabetic can cause an attack of a glycemic coma! Imagine that a diabetic patient asks to sell an approved low-sugar honey, and he is handed artificial sugar syrup. How to distinguish a fake from natural white honey.
In order not to be mistaken when choosing a product, adhere to these truths.
- The natural product has a uniform consistency, while the fake syrup is characterized by an excessive amount of crystals.
- True white honey flows down from the spoon in a slow, slow stream, while fake honey flows in irregular drops.
- Bubbles form on the surface of the counterfeit product. This means that the honey was either artificially whipped up or was harvested too early before the bees have sealed the combs. This is done in order to get more profit from the sale of healthy sweets. Such a product is distinguished by an increased amount of moisture, the presence of oxygen bubbles, and a tendency to fermentation.
- Finally, the taste of natural white nectar is smooth, creamy, with various shades depending on the source of collection. The fake product contains a lot of sugar crystals, which significantly reduces the taste.
Storage
So that the healing sweetness does not lose its healing and tasting properties, it is important to remember the rules for storing white varieties of honey.
- Temperature conditions. Too high or low temperatures are not suitable for storing the product – fermentation or deterioration of the composition is possible. To preserve all the taste and medicinal qualities, keep honey in a jar at a temperature of +7 to + 20 C.
- Premises. it is recommended to store white honey varieties only in dark places. Access to direct sunlight has a detrimental effect on the medicinal composition, structure and taste of the product. Therefore, a dark corner, pantry or cellar are the most correct decisions.
According to GOST, the shelf life of honey is from 8 months to two years. However, in practice, the product is stored for more than one year. It is noteworthy that long-term storage does not in any way affect the taste, aroma and texture. But all this is possible only if the rules for storing natural honey are observed. Do not be captivated to create suitable conditions, and white honey will endow you with a delicate taste and aroma on winter evenings.
